Goblins (Gobb-linns)

Considered nothing more than murderous pests by most, goblins dwell on the fringes of other societies, scavenging amongst their waste and building their society in squalor. Though weak on their own, goblins often gather in huge numbers to overwhelm their enemies.

Basic Information

Anatomy

Goblins are short, ugly anthropoids that stand just over 3 feet tall. Their scrawny bodies are topped with over-sized and heads topped with mops of scraggly hair, with massive ears and beady red or occasionally yellow eyes.

Growth Rate & Stages

Goblins mature rapidly, reaching adulthood in five years and living up to fifty (though most goblins are violently killed before the age of 20). Mortality is high among young goblins, and when the adults fail to feed them or food runs low, youths learn at an early age that cannibalism is sometimes the best means of survival in a goblin tribe.

Ecology and Habitats

Goblins prefer to dwell in caves, amid large and dense thickets of thistles and brambles, or in structures built and then abandoned by others. Very few goblins have the drive to build structures of their own. Coastlines are favored, as goblins are quite fond of sifting through junk and flotsam in an unending quest to find treasures among the refuse of more civilized races.

Dietary Needs and Habits

Goblins can eat nearly anything, but prefer a diet of meat and consider the flesh of Humans and Halflings; a rare and difficult-to-obtain delicacy. While they fear the bigger races, goblins’ short memories and bottomless appetites mean they frequently go to war or execute raids against other races to sate their pernicious urges and fill their vast larders.

Goblins are voracious and can eat their body weight in food daily without growing fat. Goblin lairs always have numerous storerooms and larders. While they prefer human and gnome flesh, a goblin won’t turn down any food—except, perhaps, vegetables.

Biological Cycle

Goblins' extremely high level of energy comes from both their accelerated metabolism and dangerous lifestyles. Their fast metabolisms make goblins eating machines stricken with almost constant hunger; fortunately, goblins can subsist on almost anything organic.

Behaviour

Goblins are also quite superstitious, and treat magic with a fawning mixture of awe and fear. They have the habit of ascribing magic to the mundane as well, with fire and writing both taking on mystical power in goblin society. Fire is much loved by goblins for its capacity to wreak great destruction and because it doesn’t require size or strength to wield, but written words are hated. Goblins believe that writing steals words out of your head, and as a result of this belief, goblins are universally illiterate.

Goblin hatred runs deep, and few things inspire their wrath more than dwarves (who have long fought against goblins), horses (who frighten goblins tremendously), and regular dogs (whom goblins regard as pale imitations of goblin dogs).

Additional Information

Social Structure

Violent but fecund, goblins exist in primitive tribal structures with constant shifts in power. Rarely able to sustain their own needs through farming or hunting and gathering, goblin tribes live where food is abundant or near places that they can steal it from. Since they are incapable of building significant fortifications and have been driven out of most easily accessible locations, goblins tend to live in unpleasant and remote locations, and their poor building and planning skills ensure that they dwell primarily in crude caves, ramshackle villages, and abandoned structures. Few goblins are good with tools or skilled at farming, and the rare items of any value that they possess are usually cast-off implements from humans or other civilized cultures.

Goblins’ appetites and poor planning lead to small tribes dominated by the strongest warriors. Even the hardiest goblin leaders quickly find out that their survival depends on conducting frequent raids to secure sources of food and kill off the more aggressive youth of the tribe. Both goblin men and women are ugly and vicious, and both sexes are just as likely to rise to positions of power in a tribe. .

Facial characteristics

Goblins have slightly oversized heads with massive ears and red or occasionally yellow eyes. Their voracious appetites are served well by their huge mouths filled with jagged teeth.

Perception and Sensory Capabilities

Goblin eyesight has adapted to the caverns deep underground from which their species sprang from. They possess darkvision, and can see in pitch black surroundings. Goblins also possess a keen sense of smell and hearing which also helps them navigate the caverns, caves, and tunnels in which they tend to dwell.

Civilization and Culture

Naming Traditions

Male Names: Boorgub, Chuffy, Churkus, Drubbus, Gawg, Ghorg, Gogmurch, Irnk, Kavak, Lunthus, Mogmurch, Mogawg, Murch, Nurpus, Pogus, Poog, Ronk, Rotfoot, Unk, Vogun, Zobmaggle, Zord.
Female Names: Aka, Chee, Fevva, Geedra, Goomluga, Gretcha, Hoglob, Janka, Klongy, Luckums, Lupi, Medge, Namby, Olba, Rempy, Reta, Ruxi, Vruta, Yalla, Ziku.

Gender Ideals

Both goblin men and women are ugly and vicious, and both sexes are just as likely to rise to positions of power in a tribe. goblin babies are almost completely self-sufficient not long after birth, and such infants are treated almost like pets. Many tribes raise their children communally in cages or pens where adults can largely ignore them. Mortality is high among young goblins, and when the adults fail to feed them or food runs low, youths learn at an early age that cannibalism is sometimes the best means of survival in a goblin tribe.

Average Technological Level

Goblins rarely build their own structures; they prefer to use terrain and natural defenses to their advantage, often settling in areas of heavy undergrowth, easily defensible caves, and ruins. They rely on scavenging for most of their sustenance and are gifted at surviving in even the most hostile climes. Goblins gather in tribes of up to a few dozen, led by a chieftain and sub-chiefs who are simply the toughest individuals in the group. They keep numerous mounts in their settlements, typically wolves, and goblin dogs, but never ponies, horses, or dogs, as they have an intense fear and hatred of these animals.

Major Language Groups and Dialects

Goblins speak their own language, which consists of shreiks, growls, squaks, and howls. They have been known to speak Trade/Imperial, but with much difficulty, like speaking in the third person and jumbles tenses and context.

by Generated by Malekoth using Image Creator from Microsoft Designer via Bing

Lifespan

50 years

Average Height

Male: 3'4" Female: 3'0"

Average Weight

Male: 30 lbs Female: 45 lbs.

Body Tint, Colouring and Marking

Goblins’ skin tone varies based on the surrounding environment; common skin tones include green, gray, and blue, though black and even pale white goblins have been sighted.